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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24836692">Date Night</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonFish4/pseuds/DragonFish4'>DragonFish4</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Original Work</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Blind Date, Dragons</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 05:15:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,923</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24836692</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonFish4/pseuds/DragonFish4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Tlakeranight the Venomous agrees to go on a blind date set up by a friend. What could go wrong?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Date Night</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tlakeranight the Venomous was not having a good day. From what felt like the moment she unfurled her wings and slithered off her hoard of gold, everything just seemed to go wrong. It started with one of the cats that lived in her cave having left the bloodied, half-eaten corpse of some small creature strewn across the floor. That might not have been a problem if she'd slept well the night before and so hadn't been still half-asleep, and so stepped right in it. Or if it had been on a day when one of the humans from the nearby village would be coming by to tidy up. But that day was the start of a festival, and no one would be by for several days. That left her to clean up several small messes that she could barely see. What was already going to be a busy day was off to a late start. She didn't let such a petty thing bother her much, though, not that day. A couple of weeks ago, one of her friends had set up a blind date for her. Though she was dubious about the whole concept, she did have to admit that it at the very least sounded like a good excuse to get out for a bit. If anything, the rough start made her more determined to enjoy the rest of the day. It had been quite some time since she had taken the time to really shine up her scales, let alone do up her make-up. By the time she had finished, admiring her reflection it the lake outside her lair, she felt like a new dragon and a century or so younger. With a prideful flick of her tail, she took to the air.</p>
<p>As she soared through the air, Tlakeranight let herself simply revel in the joy of flight. So much so that she didn't notice the storm clouds until she was almost in them. Being so abruptly drawn out of her good mood was annoying, but the course it pushed her onto made her thoroughly late. Landing in a clearing near the arranged meeting spot, she had to take a moment to clear her irritation, which she knew just made her more late, which in turn made her more irritated. After several deep breaths, she called it good enough and strode forward. As she approached the meeting spot, her heart sank. Looking around, she saw no trace of who she might be there to meet. Figuring that perhaps her date was also running late, she was settling in to wait when she heard an exclamation. "Whoa-kay!" the voice said, "Dragon! That's a dragon!"</p>
<p>"How astute," Tlakeranight replied, turning her head to look down at the human man, "Now, if you don't mind, I'm meeting someone, and I could do without the gawking."</p>
<p>"O- Oh. Um..." the man started, clearly trying to collect himself. He hesitated for a moment, shifting uncertainly. "You... You wouldn't happen to know Melia, by any chance, would you?" Tlakeranight looked at him in surprise, before sighing in resignation.</p>
<p>"I really should have expected something like this from her, shouldn't I?" she grumbled. Neither said anything for a long moment, before Tlakeranight stood up. "Well, I already made the reservation, and it would be a shame for us to have both come all this way for nothing, would it not?" she said. He nodded in agreement, and the two headed towards town.</p>
<p>Though Tlakeranight made relatively frequent trips to Oakbank, she had never been to The Forest Glade Tavern  before. It was a new place, trendy, and she'd heard quite a few good things about it from the people she knew who had been there. She would have much preferred to make the reservation in person, but she had not had the opportunity to be out to Oakbank in the past few weeks, and so had needed to rely on the use of a messenger. But she had used that messenger in the past, and had been satisfied with the response she had been given. So, as she approached the restaurant, it was with some confidence. It was a partial outdoor restaurant, a major reason as to why she had picked it, and she was glad to note that there was someone at a stand outside. "Reservation for two under Tlakeranight," she said to them.</p>
<p>"Um..." they said, "Yeah, I see that here. But... I don't think you'll... fit in the dining room." Tlakeranight blinked at them.</p>
<p>"No, I don't think I will. Which is why I made an <i>outdoors</i> reservation."</p>
<p>"I don't know who told you that, um... ma'am?" the attendant guessed, "But we don't allow guests to make reservations for specific areas."</p>
<p>"I <i>specifically</i> asked about that before I made the reservation," Tlakeranight grumbled, and the attendant took a half-step backwards nervously.</p>
<p>"Like- Like I said, m- ma'am. I don't know who you talked to, but we- we don't do that. And, un- unfortunately, our- our outside area is... f- full."</p>
<p> "Well," her 'date' said, stepping forward to defuse the situation, "Is there any other way you could accommodate us, do you think?"</p>
<p>"I'll- I'll see what I can do," the attendant replied and scurried away.</p>
<p>The 'solution' presented to them was far from ideal, but it was better than nothing, Tlakeranight figured. Her 'date' sat inside next to an opened window, while she crouched grumpily outside. "I guess everyone else thought this would be a good place for a date," he joked, trying to bring the mood up, "And, reservation mess aside, it does seem like a good choice, T-T lak- Tla ker-."</p>
<p>"Kera is fine," she sighed, carefully looking through the small menu she had been given, "And I suppose it's rather rude of me to not ask your name until now."</p>
<p>"Edric. And it's perfectly understandable that something like that would get overlooked with how rough a start tonight got off to. And I can hold it to be too rude of you. I mean, I also had it slip my mind to ask yours." Edric gave a charming smile, and Tlakeranight could see what Melia saw in him, but it did nothing to kindle any sort of attraction.</p>
<p>"I suppose," she replied, narrowing her eyes at the menu. "Can you make any sense of this menu?" she asked, giving up in exasperation, "None of the options seem particularly... made of meat."</p>
<p>"No. I was thinking something similar myself." Edric waved over a somewhat harried-looking member of the wait staff. "Excuse me," he said, "We had some questions about the menu."</p>
<p>"Sorry," they said, barely looking at him, "I don't know anything about that. One minute, and I'll get you a manager."</p>
<p> One minute turned into several, while Tlakeranight and Edric tried to make small talk in the meantime, but it was an awkward attempt at conversation. Both were silently thankful when who looked to be the manager finally made their way over to them. "I was told you had questions about the menu?" they said.</p>
<p>"Yes," Tlakeranight replied, doing her best to keep the annoyance out of her voice, "It's a little... small for me to read easily, so if you could point out to me which options would best suit a carnivore such as myself?"</p>
<p>"I, personally, recommend the stew. It tastes even better than the 'real' thing."</p>
<p>"What do you mean 'real thing'?" Tlakeranight  asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.</p>
<p>"Well, traditionally, stews are made with a meat base, but our special combinations of seasoning and vegetables are identical in texture and, in my opinion, superior in taste.”</p>
<p>"It's not about taste. What on the menu has <i>meat</i>?"</p>
<p>"Well, nothing. We specialize in meat substitutes."</p>
<p>"I <i>specifically</i> asked," Tlakeranight started, losing what little patience she had left, "When I made my reservation, which was supposed to be for an outside space, by the way, to make sure that there was <i>some</i> type of meat on the menu. Beef, chicken, pork, fish. Hells, I'd even take rabbit. <i>Anything.</i> And I was <i>assured</i> that you would be able to accommodate me."</p>
<p>"Why don't I bring you a sample of the stew? Even the most devoted meat-eaters can't tell the difference."</p>
<p>"You listen up," she hissed," Because I <i>despise</i> repeating myself. It. Is not. About. The. Taste. I am an <i>obligate</i> carnivore. I <i>need</i> to eat meat, because I can't <i>digest</i> most plant matter. Do. You. Understand?" A tense silence stretched out as Tlakeranight 's anger caused a vitriolic substance to drip down her fangs.</p>
<p>"Hey," Edric said, "I think we will try the stew and maybe a couple other things you think we might like. You know, for variety."</p>
<p>"Certainly, sir," the manager replied, before retreating into the busy dining area. Tlakeranight turned her glare to Edric, but he met it with a wink.</p>
<p>"On my way into town, I stopped at a tavern that had the best barbecue," he grinned, glancing around to ensure none of the employees were watching, "How about we ditch this place and go there instead?" Tlakeranight  was taken aback for a moment as he stood up and vaulted out of the window. A grin formed on her face, too.</p>
<p>"Shouldn't take too long to get there by air, don't you think?" she asked, holding out a large, scaly hand.</p>
<p>The flight took maybe 10 minutes before the two landed outside a fairly remote, but still rather lively-seeming, inn. "I'll go in and order us something," Edric said as he was set down, "Why don't you find us somewhere to sit? Oh! And would you care for anything to drink?"</p>
<p>"Mead would be nice," Tlakeranight replied, already looking around for a spot.</p>
<p>"An excellent choice!" he said, before disappearing into the building. The inn was close to the top of a small-ish mountain that served as a pass through a range of much larger mountains. So, while the views it offered were limited, they were also impressive. Ignoring the direction they had come from, Tlakeranight settled in on a ridge that overlooked the foothills of the mountains, smoothing out to a plain dotted with villages. In the distance, the sun slowly started to set, casting a golden glow over everything.</p>
<p>It was some time before the food, a whole roast cow, was ready. In the meantime, Tlakeranight and Edric shared most of a cask of mead, both getting somewhat tipsy by the time their meal was brought out. As they ate, and drank, friendly conversation flowed freely between them. The shadows had grown long, evening giving way to night, by the time dessert arrived, a large bowl of ice cream for Tlakeranight and a cone for Edric. Across the plain in front of them, small flashes of color popped up over the villages, fireworks celebrating the start of the summer festival. "Today's certainly been different than I expected," Edric laughed.</p>
<p>"That it has," Tlakeranight agreed. "Far from what I had hoped it would be, but this is nice in its own way."</p>
<p>"Yeah. Even if you're not exactly my type."</p>
<p>"Nor are you mine. But I do not think my life worse for having met you."</p>
<p>"We're still going to get Melia back for this, though, right?"</p>
<p>"Most assuredly." Tlakeranight chuckled, stretching out in the soft grass. "But, perhaps, our paths do not have to completely part afterwards."</p>
<p> "Well, I was looking for more of a 'festival fling'," Edric said, "But making a new friend is certainly nice, regardless."</p>
<p>"That it is," Tlakeranight nodded, "That it is."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Based on ideas a friend and I came up with while doing some coloring. I'll add the image eventually. When I get around to it. So expect it some time Q3 2022.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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